Philanthropist, alumnus to lead seminar on race and health

The first of three seminars on Health, Racism and Communication will be led by Tulane alumnus Flozell Daniels Jr. on Thursday, Sept. 14, at the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

Daniels, CEO and president of Foundation for Louisiana, said Louisiana faces heightened racial disparities when it comes to mass incarceration, access to health care, affordable housing, access to jobs and entrepreneurism, coastal restoration and environmental adaptation. The nonprofit foundation, which promotes stronger communities across the state, uses these disparities to further an agenda of racial reconciliation and justice-centered action.

The organization holds meetings and forums to engage the community and for people to “see themselves and be seen,” said Daniels, who earned an MBA from A. B. Freeman School of Business.

The foundation’s use of the “Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation framework,” developed by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, recently involved working to pass justice reinvestment legislation — the most far-reaching in Louisiana’s history.

Communication skills are critical when attempting to transform public opinions, shifting people’s ability to see their common interests around tough issues, Daniels said.

“We have to focus communication strategies that build a narrative that helps people hear us and work with us and hear the voices and experiences of people who typically don’t get voice or agency,” Daniels said.

The free, public seminar takes place at 1440 Canal St. in the Diboll Auditorium. A recording will posted on YouTube afterward.